Steniging van de heilige Stefanus 1608

Raffaello Schiaminossi’s engraving, Stoning of Saint Stephen, presents a scene teeming with dynamic energy across a compact space. Rendered with sharp, decisive lines, the composition is structured to draw the eye through the chaotic act of violence. The foreground figures, captured mid-action, lunge and strain, creating a sense of depth. The work’s formal arrangement explores the complex interplay between movement and stillness, brutality and grace. Stephen, kneeling under a divine light from the heavens, forms a visual counterpoint to the aggression around him. The tight composition channels and amplifies the emotional intensity of the moment, inviting us to consider the structure of violence and the artist’s role in framing such acts. Schiaminossi seems to destabilize established meanings of religious martyrdom. The artist shows a dynamic tension between the earthly struggle and the divine promise of salvation. The engraving serves as a site where faith and brutal reality intersect.